Generator operation



Nov. 23, 1937. w E G|LMQRE 2,100,076

GENERATOR OPERATION Filed larch 2, 1934 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 60 "fl Ill 6 65 62 I, 1 n l 2/ /6 I9 20 65 36 INVENTOR I W/iam E Gi/more- ATTORNEYS Nov. 23, 1937. I w GlLMQRE 2,100,076

GENERATOR OPERATION Filed March 2, 1934 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 I 6% (9% A TTORNE Y5 Patented Nov. 23, 1937 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 16 Claims.

This invention relates to the operation of generators and more particularly to the operation of a generator from a source of power which is liable to marked fluctuation, with provision for discontinuing the production of current by the generator without interfering with the continued rotation of the armature during violent fluctuations in the drive.

The object of the invention is to provide apparatus of the kinddescribed, which will allow the continued rotation of the armature of the generator when the drive is suddenly discontinued,

and which will open the field of the generator at such times or during sudden acceleration.

A particular object of the invention is to provide apparatus of the character described which will permit the connection of a generator to an automobile motor or the like and the rapid deceleration and acceleration of said motor without burdening it with the generation of current through the generator.

A further object of the invention is to provide apparatus of the character described, which may be driven from a standard transmission power take-ofl without interfering with the shifting of gears or the like.

Further objects of the invention will appear as the description proceeds.

In the drawings forming a part of this specification, Figure l is a somewhat diagrammatic illustration of one arrangement of apparatus embodylng the invention; Figure 2 is a detail view showing the OVer running clutch; Figure 3 is a detail section on the line 3'3 of Fig. 2; Figure 4 is a view similar to Figure l, but showing the application of the invention in a somewhat different arrangement of accessory devices; Figure 5 is a'diagrammatic view showing a standard power take-oif from transmission with a wiring diagram of a generator driven thereby and a motor driven by the generator; Figures 6 and 7 are details of switches shown in Fig. 5, showing different positions of the switches; Fig. 8 is a section 01 a housing shown in Fig. 1 and is approximately on the line indicated by section line H on Fig. 1; Fig. 9 is a section approximately on the line 99 of Fig. 8, and Fig. 10 is a detail of a portion of Fig. 8, showing the parts in a diflerent position.

In the embodiment of the invention illustrated in Fig. 1, the improvement is applied to the power plant of an automobile or truck. There is shown the usual motor housing 'II and a belt 12 driven by the motor through shaft I 3, and driving fan I 4,

generator l5 and any other desired accessories, such as a pump. I r

In the device shown, belt 12 is driven from shaft l3 through an Over-running clutch 24. This clutch may be of any suitable type, but in the embodiment shown there is a hub l6 driven from. shaft l3 and driving a ring ll, which is grooved at ill to receive belt l2. There are a plurality of notches IS in the ring, these notches having eccentric outer surfaces and within the spaces 19 provided by these notches there are mounted rollers 20 of graduated sizes, which are normally pressed towards the narrow end of the, space by a spring 21 in the wider end of the notch. This will provide a secure clutch when the hub 15 i6 is turning in the direction of arrow 22, but will promptly release the ring if for any reason it should tend to travel faster than the hub. Ring I1 is held in place by flanges 23.

The field of the generator is controlled by de- 20 vices which cut it out at times when it is undesirable to have the generator produce current. In this embodiment of the invention the field is controlled by suitable devices within a switch box 25. There is shown a rod 26, which is preferably connected with some portion of the clutch of the vehicle, so that when the clutch is out the field of the generator is opened. There is also provided a suitable inertia governor within a housing 21. This inertia governor opens the 30 field of the generator upon sudden acceleration or deceleration of the generator armature. The details of one form of such a governor are shown in Figs. 8, 9 and 10, and will be described later.

In Fig. 4 there is shown a somewhat similar 35 embodiment of the invention, but in this construction the generator shaft 30 also drives a pump 3! and a suitable gear train enclosed in a housing 32, which gear train drives a supercharger 33. Drive shaft 30 is driven through an 40 over-running clutch 28 and a suitable gear train within a housing 34 and driven in a suitable manner from the crank shaft of the motor, as will be readily understood.

In this construction the generator 15 has its 45 field controlled from a switch box 25 in a manner similar to that described in connection with Figure 1, that is, a rod 26* is'connected to a lever 35, which in turn is actuated by a rod 36 connected to the vehicle clutch so as to open the field of the generator when the clutch is released. The field likewise may be opened by an inertia governor 21, which may be of the same type as that shown in Fig. 1.

- in Figs. 8, 9 and 10, there is mounted on generator shaft 38 a sleeve 31 from which there projects an arm 38. A weight 39 is pivoted at 48 to arm 38. Opposite arm 38 there is an arm 4| carrying a counterbalancing weight 42.

Around sleeve 31 there is an insulating member 43 in which there are mounted two slip rings 44 and 45, which are in contact with-wipers 48 and 41 leading to the field of the generator. Electri; cally connected with rings 48'and 45, respectively, there are two spring members 48 and 49 carrying contacts 50 and 5|. A lug 52 carried by weight 39 extends between the ends of spring members 48 and 49 so that the movement of the lug in either direction separates the contacts, as clearly shown in Fig. 10. l

Weight 39 is normally 'held in the position in which it is shown' in Fig. 8 by-centrifugal force and also by retaining springs 53 and 54, which engage cars 55 and 58 on the weight and so tend to hold it in radial alignment with arm 38' and to return it to that alignment after it has been swung to the position in which it is shown in Fig.

l0. Lug 52 may be covered with insulating material 51 in order to maintain the insulation of contacts 58 and 5|.

' For reasons which will be explained later, it is preferable to' include in the field circuit in series with the connections just described a switch which-is normally closed, but is opened when overrunning clutch 24 becomes operative. This construction is shown somewhat diagrammatically in'Fig. 3. Contact carrying members 58 and 59, somewhat similar to members 48 and 49, are mounted adjacent the overrunning clutch and their contacts 'normally complete the circuit through the field of the generator, but at times their contacts may be separated in the following the usual motor within-casing I0 and from transa mission 'I| there is a standard power take-ofi device I2, the details of which need not be shown.-

manner: v

Member 58 carriesarms 59 adjacent to'ring 88, which is mountedupon pins 8| projecting from flange 23. Pins 8| insure the rotation of ring 88 with flange 23 to allow the movement of the ring towards and from-the flange.

press spring 2| during the overrunning action of the clutch, pin 84 .is' carried up wedge 85, and thereby presses ring away from flange 23 and against arms 59 and thereby separates the contacts carried by members 58 and 59 and so opens the field of the generator;

In the construction shown in Fig. 5, there is There is provided the usual clutch operative by handle I3 to connect the power take-off with the transmission or to disconnect it as desired.

Power take-oil ;I2 drives one member of an overrunning clutch I4, which may be similar to that shown in Figs. 2 and 3. The shaft driven thereby is connected through universal joints I5 and 18 with a generator 11, diagrammatically shown in the wiring diagram as a direct current I a generator. The generator'is shown as being connected todrive a motor I8 for operating any de- Normally the ring is drawn to its position nearest the flange by sired accessory. A switch I9 is provided in the circuit 88 connecting generator I! with motor I8 and a switch 8| is provided in the circuit. 82 of the field 83 of generator 'I'I. Switches I9 and 8| are operated by .a rod 84 connected-to an extension 85 of the usual clutch pedal 88.

Switch I9 is operated by a. bell crank lever 81 connected to rod 84- by a pin 88 working in a slot 89 in one arm of the bell crank, while switch 8| is operated by a bell crank 98, carrying a pin 9| working in a slot 92 in rod 84. As will be seen from an examination of Figs. 6 and 7, movement of rod 84, as viewed in those figures, opens switch I9 and then switch 8|. Because of the lost mo- .tion provided by slot 92, it will be readily seen that a reverse movement of ,the rod closes switch I9 first and switch 8| later.

The operation of the device will be fairly ap- "parent from the above-detailed description, but,

may be summarized as follows;

It will-be readily seen that in the construction shown in Figs. 1 and 4, opening of the customary motor clutch operates through rod 28 or 28 to open the field of the generator so that there is not the drag of the generator current upon the sudden acceleration, the inertia member 39 is returned to its customary switch closing position by centrifugal force and springs 53 and 54 as soon as the speed becomes approximately constant.

When the motor is suddenly decelerated, inertia member 39 likewise opens the field of the generator and allows the armature to continue high speed rotation through its own momentum. This results in overrunning of clutch 24 or 28 and because of the overrunning of the clutch, the contacts carried by members 58 and 59 are separated. As soon as the speed of the motor shaft 38 becomes approximately constant, weight-39 returns to its switch closing position, but the field circuit is not closed until the armature of the generator and the (other accessories connected to the same shaft are slowed up tothe speed of the motor during the shifting of the gears. Likemotor or the motor .is speedednrp tmequal the speed of the generator shaft so as to again engage the overrunning clutch.

As a result of the above construction, it be seen that the vehicle motor can he suddenly decelerated and accelerated without placing excessive strainupon the shaft running the motorand other accessories. This has obvious advantages where the usual accessories are run as indicated in Fig. 1,'since it allows momentary slowing of .the vehicle and prompt acceleration thereof without necessitating the speeding up of the generator and other accessories durlngthe acceleration of the car until the acceleration of the motor equals the speed at which these parts have continued to move by their momentum. In the construction indicated Tin Fig. 4, the arrangement is more important because it allows a more constant action of the supercharger 38. This is run customarily at very high speeds and when the motor is' suddenly decelerated, the slowing upof the driveshaft is sufllciently sudden to place a great strain upon the supercharger, the speed of deceleration being increased by the braking actionot the generator. By cutting out the field of the generator during deceleration, this "swift deceleration is avoided andthe rate of deceleration is made more and, therefore, does not require greater strength in the parts operating the supercharger than is required for normal accelerating action.

In the construction shown in Fig. 5, the combined overrunning 'clutch and arrangement for opening the field of the generator during shifting provides for the temporary release of the transmission from the drag or push of the power takeoif during shifting of gears. Hitherto, where such a power take-oil has been employed for driving a generator of considerable size, it has rendered the shifting of gears during the travel of the vehicle dlflicult, if not impossible.

Such a construction is particularly desirable for a truck carrying a refrigerating device, cement mixer, or other apparatus driven by motor 18. It allows the substantially continuous operation of the accessory 'motor 18 without interfering with the normal operation of the truck.

In the construction shown, the two switches 19 and 8| are provided, with switch 19 opening and closing before switch 8| in order to avoid too great an electric shock through motor 18. It will be readily apparent that where conditions require, an equivalent result may be obtained by employing a rheostatic starting switch of wellknown type so that the current will not be turned on to the motor too suddenly.

It will be readily understood that accessories besides the generator 11 may be driven from the power take-oif shown in Fig. and also that various accessories may be driven in combination with the generator in arrangements similar to those shown in Figs. 1 and 4. Also it will be apparent that while an electric motor for driving accessories is shown only in the arrangement illustrated in Fig. 5, similar motors may be driven by generators connected up as in Figs. 1 and 4, if desired. Also, while three diiferent arrangements have been shown in which the generator armature is driven throughan overrunning clutch with provision for cutting out the field while the overrunning clutch is in operation, a similar combination of overrunning clutch for the generator drive and field cut-out during the operation of the overrunning clutch may be used in any other combination of generator drive where the conditions render their use necessary or advisable. Also, while the inertia switch described herein is intended primarily for use in connection with an overrunning clutch, it will be evident that it could be used without an overrunning clutch where there are sudden variations in the power applied to driving the generator shaft and where no overrunning clutch is used. While for brevity, reference is made to opening the field of the generator, the purpose is to take the load on the armature and allow it to rotate freely, and opening switch 19 and thus opening the load circuit relieves the generator armature of the load of this circuit. With any type of generator, opening switches resulting in relieving the generator from its load and allowing the armature to continue rotation without retardation by the generated current is the equivalentof opening the field in the type of generator and electric motor connection disclosed herein. Accordingly, the appended claims are not restricted to the specific arrangements shown in thedrawings, except as stated in the claims. 3 What I claim is:

1. In combination, a generator havingan armature and a field, an over-running clutch, means for driving the armature through the clutch, and means for opening the circuit of the generator field during the desired operation of the over-running clutch.

2. In combination, a generator having an armature and a field, an over-running clutch, means for driving the armature through the clutch, and means for opening the circuit of the generator field during the desired operation of the over-running clutch, the last said means comprising a switch opened by the over-running of the clutch.

3. In combination, a generator having an armature and a field, an over running clutch, means for driving the armature through the clutch, and means for'opening the circuit of the generator field during the desired operation of the over-running clutch, the last said means comprising a rotary inertia switch driven with the generator armature and opening upon sudden acceleration thereof.

4. In combination, a generator having an armature and a field, an over-running clutch, means for driving the armature through the clutch, and means for opening the circuit of the generator field during the desired operation of the over-running clutch, the last said means comprising a rotary inertia switch driven with the generator armature and opening upon sudden deceleration thereof.

5. In combination, a generator having an armature and a field, an over-running clutch, means for driving the armature through the clutch, and means for opening the circuit of the generator field during the desired operation of the over-running clutch, the last said means comprising a rotary inertia switch driven with the generator armature and opening upon sudden change in the rate of rotation thereof.

6. In combination, a generator having an armature and a field, an over-running clutch, means for driving the armature through the .clutch, and means for opening the circuit of the sudden change in its rate of rotation, and closing and remaining closed during approximately constant speed running, regardless of the rate of such constant speed.

8. In a motor vehicle, a generator having an armature and a field, an over-running clutch, means normally driving the armature from the motor of the vehicle through the over-running clutch, and means for opening the field during the desired operation of the over-running clutch.

9. In a motor vehicle, a generator having an armature and a field, an over-running clutch; means normally driving the armature from the motor of the vehicle through the over-running clutch, and means for opening the field during the desired operation of the over-running clutch, the last said means comprising means, actuated by the releasing of the vehicle clutch, for opening the field.

10. In a motor vehicle, a generator having an armature and a field, an over-running clutch, means normally driving the armature from the motor of the vehicle through the over-running clutch, and means for opening the field during the desired operation of the over-running clutch,

the last said means comprising a switch opened by deceleration of the motor drive shaft and a switchopened by the over-running ofthe overrunning clutch.

11. In a motor vehicle, a generator having an armature and a field, mechanically driven accessories, an over-running clutch, means normally driving said armature and accessories from .the

,motor of the vehicle through the over-running 13. In a motor vehicle having a clutch, a

transmission, and power take-oft from said transmission, a generator having an armature and a field, an over-runningclutch,means to drive the armature from thepower take-off through the over-running clutch, and connections from the vehicle clutch opening the field when the vehicle clutch is released. g

14. In a motor vehicle having a clutch, a

' transmission, and a power take-off from the transmission, a generator having an armature and a field, a motor, a circuit normally connecting the motor and generator to drive the motor from the generator, an over-running clutch, means driving the armature from the power take-off through the over-running clutch, and means opening the field during desired over-running of the clutch.

15.- In a motor vehicle having a clutch, a transmission, and a power take-off from the transmission, a generator having an armature and a field, a motor, a circuit normally connecting the motor and generator to drive the motor from the generator, an over-running clutch, means driving the armature from the power takeoff through the over-running clutch, and means opening the field during desired over-running of the clutchand for opening the motor-driving circuit prior to the opening of the field.

16. In a motor vehicle having a clutch, a

transmission, and a power take-off from theclosing first the motor switch "and then the field switch when the vehicle clutch is engaged.

WILLIAM' E. GILMORE. 

